To play online gambling, you will need a computer with Internet access. Most gambling sites only accept PCs running Windows. However, there are also sites for Mac users. If you do not have a PC with Windows, you can use a laptop or a smartphone. You can deposit funds by credit or debit cards.
Some countries have banned online gambling. In France, there are plans to regulate the industry and tax it. The proposed legislation aims to prohibit credit card companies from making transactions with online gambling establishments. However, these plans have not been enacted. For now, online gambling is still illegal in France. The bill also prohibits betting exchanges.
Online gambling has become popular in the late 1990s. In 1996, there were fifteen gambling websites. By 1998, there were more than 200. A Frost & Sullivan report stated that online gambling revenues exceeded $830 million in 1998. In the same year, the first internet poker room was introduced. In the same year, the US Senate introduced the Internet Gambling Prohibition Act which would have prohibited online gambling for U.S. residents. In 1999, multiplayer online gambling became popular.
In November 2002, PayPal stopped processing online gambling transactions. Neteller, a company based in the United States, continued to process payments to online gambling sites. However, the founders of Neteller were arrested in the United States and charged with conspiracy and money laundering.